On My Way
by LoveHappyEndings
Summary: Princess Elsa and pauper Emma are born at the same time. You'd think their paths would never cross. But when Elsa is captured it's up to Emma, who has been recruited by Prince Killian, to pose as the princess until she is found. Along the way Emma begins to fall for the Prince even though he is betrothed to Elsa. Not ElsaxHook though. Based on Princess and the Pauper.
1. Introduction

**All will be explained.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own OUAT or _Princess and the Pauper_.**

* * *

><p>Long ago and far away, in a village high on a mountain top, something amazing was occurring. At the very same moment, two identical baby girls were born.<p>

One, a baby princess. The king and queen were overjoyed! Princess Elsa would have only the finest.

The second baby girl was named Emma. Her parents loved here every bit as much as the king and queen loved the princess. But they worried, they were so poor! How would they be able to care for their little daughter?

Many years passed. The princess learned her royal duties, while Emma worked long and hard as a seamstress for the spiteful Madame Mills, never mind the fact she couldn't sew to save her life.

With lives so different, it wasn't surprising that the princess and the pauper never met. But fate decreed they would.

It all started years after the two girls were born, and at the royal mine. The miners informed the queen the gold had run out! The widowed queen, her husband had died at sea, was shocked. The kingdom was now bankrupt. How was she going to take care of her people? If only she could call on her trusted advisor Rumplestiltskin. But he was away on a long journey.

She needed to do something quickly to save the kingdom. But what? And then it struck her! Nearby lived a rich king who was seeking a wife for his son...

* * *

><p><strong>If you've watched <em>the Princess and the Pauper<em> and recognize like 90% of these words, then yay! If you haven't, you don't need to. This fic is based on the Barbie movie, which I'm pretty sure is based on _the Prince and the Pauper_. Anyways, it strays from the plotline enough that I am proud to say I didn't just replace the names. There are plot twists and the ending is quite different.**


	2. Free

****_important:_ Reread the last chapter, I made a couple changes. ****

**Disclaimer: I don't own OUAT or _the Princess and the Pauper._**

* * *

><p>Elsa fidgeted on the pedestal, mindful of the many hands hemming her wedding dress, measuring her...all this work for Killian, who had adamantly protested against the engagement.<p>

The two of them had been friends for only a handful of years, but they knew each other well enough that they had formed a purely _platonic_ relationship. A marriage was the last thing Elsa wanted, especially with her best friend.

An advisor was spewing out royal duties she had to carry out that day, his words sounding like mush. Something about only twenty minutes to her royal fitting, (wasn't this her fitting?), something about a speech, and a whole lot of lessons.

She stepped off the platform, ignoring everyone else, and sighed exasperatedly. Just one day for herself. No lessons or duties, that was all she wanted.

Dismissing the servants, she plopped down onto her desk chair and picked up a pen to write a letter to her sister.

Her sister Anna was off exploring. Adventures were something the two of them craved, but because Elsa was heir to the throne, only Anna could fulfill her wishes.

**_Dear Anna..._**

* * *

><p>"Does she <em>really<em> think I can do this?" Emma thrust a dress with a long hem at her friend Ruby's face. The instructions were to _press the hem_, and though she had worked for over a decade with Madame Mills, she was never taught anything. The difference between crocheting and knitting was lost on her, all she knew was that they both required yarn and a needle.

"Here," Ruby held out a hand and Emma dropped the offending article of clothing into it.

Ruby started first by using red thread, her trademark. The blonde blanked out after that, only groaned softly and buried her head in her arms.

"One day to myself, it's all I want. And no debt to pay either."

Madame Mills, other wise known as Regina, swept into the room. Her outrageous dress billowed behind her, reminding the girls of a bat.

"You'd think that you're getting paid for chattering with the amount of talking back here." Regina looked disapprovingly at the mugs of ale on the table. "What do you think I'm running here? A tavern?"

"I'd have said a debtor's prison." Emma muttered.

"If you actually taught Emma how to sew," Ruby sent Emma a warning look, "then she could actually work. The girl can't even thread a needle."

Emma laughed, but it died on her tongue as Regina gave her a look so withering it would have killed her cat. If she had a cat.

"Keep laughing! You'll be working for _me_ for another 37 years." Madame Mills cackled.

Emma's jaw dropped. "But I've already paid off more than half!"

"But there's interest isn't there? Your parents should have thought of that before borrowing so much, then dumping you on me."

Her parents had borrowed a lot of money from Regina to buy a house and food, and especially to support Emma once she was born. But they borrowed more than they could pay off, their solution was to send Emma to Regina hoping Emma would be paid and make a living for herself. They didn't see any solution to their financial problem, their only wish was for Emma to have her best chance at life and not be weighed down by her parent's debt.

Unbeknownst to them however, Regina wouldn't let Emma go until she had paid off her parent's debt. And she wasn't paid, any money she earned went towards paying off the debt.

"They did it to give me my best chance." Emma weakly defended.

"Their mistake." Regina sneered, ignoring Ruby's little gasp of horror and walked back out of the room.

Emma closed her eyes, picturing herself anywhere else, a thousand miles away. _I could leave, but I don't have money, or credentials, or relatives. I might as well stay_.

"You okay Em?" Ruby asked.

"I'm fine." _All I want it to get out of here and become a swordswoman._

_And find my parents._

* * *

><p><strong><em>...and now I'm getting married to Killian! <em>**_**I want to marry whom I choose, though I don't want to get married at all. If you were here, things would be so much better. Maybe you could convince Mother that there are better ways to rebuild our treasury**._

Elsa was interrupted by a knocking at her bedroom door.

"My dress fits fine thank you!" She called out, not in the mood for more measuring.

"It's only me." The Queen opened the door and slipped through.

Queen Gerda of Arendelle was young, but her hair was streaked with grey. Losing her husband and finding out the kingdom was barely supported seemed to have aged her. She cast an eye around the room, the abandoned wedding dress flung on the bed and the many engagement gifts stacked carelessly on the table.

"I'm so sorry, my darling." She knew Elsa didn't want to marry, much less a friend, but in her eyes there was no other choice. "But you know the only way to take care of our people is to marry Prince-"

"I know. It's my duty." She cut in.

Gerda missed the flat tone, and maybe even the whole phrase Elsa said, and squealed. "Oh! And look! Another engagement gift!"

Elsa rolled her eyes at the over the top bow and sparkly wrapping. No way had Killian wrapped that. Whatever was in there probably wasn't even picked by him.

She clearly remembered the day he had stormed into the castle, leather coat flapping behind him, (reminding her of a bat.)

"You won't believe what David's making me do!" His blue eyes flashed with anger.

"What? Have you wear clothes fit for the next in line?" She teased. Killian's leather pants and kohl lined eyes were frowned upon by the stuffier royals, though not many ladies were complaining.

"Marry you." He spat.

Elsa giggled. "Is this another one of his pranks? Have he and Snow joined to get you back for that last prank you did?"

"That wasn't a prank! I didn't know the horses weren't tied up!" Killian sniffed.

"Well Mother hasn't told me anything about this." Elsa gently placed a hand on his arm. "We can go ask her if this is true."

Then followed the screaming match between Elsa and Gerda, because of course David _hadn't_ been playing a prank. Elsa had known about the gold running out, but she didn't know she had been introduced to Killian so she could _marry_ him!

**_...you'd think that I'm so lucky, that I have so many things. _Elsa returned to her letter. _But I'd leave it all if I didn't have to get married. No, I'd leave it all if I could get one day of freedom. Maybe you can take me to the Southern Isles next time with you._**

**_Love, Elsa._**

She sprayed it with her floral perfume, then rang for the maid to post it.

* * *

><p>"How was the fitting?" Killian tossed Elsa an apple.<p>

"I don't see how it _couldn't_ go well. They just measure me." she said.

"And Anna?"

"She'll be back soon, her last letter said another two days."

"That's good then right?" They were sitting on the docks, his ship was docked there. Killian threw his apple core into the water, and the two of them watched it bob.

"I guess." She didn't mention that the latest gift was some kind of green pendant thing. He knew she liked blue.

"Once we're married, we don't need to change you know. We can stay like this, friends. Just married." He sounded a little worried.

"Of course, we aren't going to ruin our friendship." Elsa stuck out a hand. "I promise."

"I'm surprised you aren't fighting against this." He shook her hand.

"It's my duty. Duty means doing the things your heart may well regret."

* * *

><p><strong>I'd really love the feedback! What you liked about the chapter, any mistakes you caught. Seriously, if I spelt something wrong tell me. This story is not beta'd, like all my stories because of a disastrous attempt with a beta once.<strong>


	3. A Girl Like Me

**Due to there being no foreshadowing in the movie about who the bad guy is, (and to make the story work with the movie,) y'all would have seen who the bad guy is. But I am going my own way and editing it. This is the first of many ah..._changes_. If you don't want to be spoiled, don't look up _the Princess and the Pauper._**

**Disclaimer: I don't own OUAT or ****_the Princess and the Pauper. _Direct quotes from _the Princess and the Pauper_ aren't mine obviously.**

* * *

><p>A clanging noise snaked it's way out of the mine's entrance. Deep, deep down, past the mine carts and tracks, was a single lit lantern; illuminating the way for two men.<p>

They were hacking at the walls with pick axes, when one of them stopped. He brushed off his blue shirt before reaching into a mine cart.

"What _idiot,_ put _this_ in here?" He held up a rock and waved it in his partner's face.

"That'd be me." The other man in a green tunic ducked to avoid the rock.

"We're stealing gold..." Blue Shirt hissed. "Does this look shiny?"

"No..."

"Valuable?"

"Uh no..."

"Gonna make the boss happy?"

"No."

"Then **DON'T PUT IT IN THE CART**!" He hollered. He chucked the rock behind him. Unbeknownst to them, it cracked on impact.

"Okay, okay!" They started arguing, when a clatter echoed through the tunnels.

"It's the boss!" Green Shirt whispered, panicked.

They busied themselves with hacking at the walls once more.

"I know you two weren't working. I can hear your nasally voices from miles away." The boss' accented voice spoke slowly, as if he were talking to idiots.

Which he was.

"I've been bowing and scraping to the Queen for _ten years._ I won't have it all be a waste because of you two puppets!"

"Uh, why _are _you?" Blue Shirt asked.

The boss sighed heavily, rubbing his face with his palm. "I'll return with all the gold, come back a _hero,_ and the Queen will have to promise Elsa to me! I mean, she _hates_ me, but she'll get over it once I restore her kingdom."

"Right, except for this one little problem, boss..." Blue Shirt leaned on his pickaxe, then decided against it when it hit his foot. He winced in pain.

"And what is that…" he said flatly.

**"**The queen has decided to marry her off to the King of the Enchanted Forest's son."

"What? Making a decision without me? Who does she think she is?" He gnashed his teeth together.

"The queen...?" He cut himself off at the glare that was sent his way.

"Ah! It's a temporary setback," The boss turned away as if to leave, then he halted. "I have a better idea. What if the princess went missing? And me, the unlikely hero, brings her back? Gerda would be so happy she'll have to marry the two of us! For, how can I refuse?"

* * *

><p>"Your highness?" Elsa lifted her head from her book at that.<p>

"Kristoff?" She opened the door and let him in. "What's with the sudden formalities?"

"Prince Ki-"

Elsa glared at him.

He bowed. "Formalities are needed because the Queen sent me. Killian is here with an engagement gift."

"Fine, I can go myself." Elsa carefully placed a bookmark on her page.

"Elsa. I know you are an independent person who likes giving people the cold shoulder-" He held up a hand at her start of a protest. "But he's brought his men and I really think we should look uh..."

"I get it." She brushed the front of her blue dress off. "Let's go."

* * *

><p>"I present this engagement gift to you." Killian stuffed a box into her hand, his tone flat. It wasn't a secret the two of them didn't want to be married, Elsa doubted there was a soul in the castle who hadn't heard her fight with her mother. If someone still didn't know, they must have been living under a rock.<p>

"Thanks." She went to open the box, but he grabbed her wrist.

"Not now." He said quietly.

"May I inquire, your Excellency," Smee, Killian's father's ambassador spoke up. "If you had a date set for the wedding?"

"May a week from today do?" Gerda asked.

_"A week?" _Elsa, Killian, and for some reason, Gerda's advisor Rumplestiltskin, cried out.

Smee and the Queen looked at the three of them with concern.

"Ah, a most wise decision your Majesty." Rumplestiltskin coughed.

"A week?" Elsa repeated, incredulous.

"My dear, you've known about this marriage for months." Gerda said.

"It's just..." Elsa caught Killian's eye, he grimaced. "Whatever you say, Mother."

In the privacy of her room, Elsa opened the box. Inside was a necklace of some kind of jewel. She didn't understand why she couldn't open it in the throne room. She tossed it onto her bed and a piece of paper fluttered out. "Wha..."

Unfolding it, she read:_ Meet you at the carriages._

Elsa stuffed the paper into her pocket and without any hesitation, got changed and left her room.

"Jones?" She whispered. It was broad daylight, and while she had been smart enough to change out of her flashy, blue dress and into a plain pink one with a hood, she was still recognizable.

Although, she had never been in the village, maybe no one would know who she was.

"Here." He was sitting on a horse.

"What are you doing?" She put her hands on her hips.

"You've always been talking about wanting to see the village and to have a duty-free day." He shrugged. "This is my real engagement gift."

"Well, I'd like my gift now then." She swung up onto the horse behind him.

Along the way, she caught sight of two little girls, giggling. _So happy, free to do whatever they want._

"Have you heard the rumours about yourself? Apparently you play the dulcimer, the trumpet, and the piano. And you sing." Elsa snorted.

"Pretty sure I'm tone deaf." He led the horse to a random spot and tied him to a fence. "Stay here Roger."

"Who names their horse Roger?" she asked.

"I do."

"It feels so good to be outside the castle walls." She sniffed the air, "It smells delicious!" The two of them simultaneously turned and saw a cart selling pastries. One of the bigger displays was...

"Chocolate!" Elsa and Killian swivelled their heads again at the new but familiar voice. A red headed girl waved.

"Anna!" The two sisters ran towards each other, Killian went to go buy the chocolate.

Anna was about to spill everything about her latest adventure, when the sounds of a hammer hitting a nail perked their ears.

It was a man nailing boards across the entrance to his home, a mother and daughter watching from a couple paces away.

"I wish we could help them. I'd hate to board my home up. Although, is it possible to board up the palace?" Anna babbled, still managing to look concerned.

Elsa opened her mouth to answer, when the clanging of swords grabbed her attention. "Anna, come on! Someone could get hurt!"

She dashed off, hiking her skirt around her knees to run faster.

"I'll meet you back at the castle. I want to see Mother." Anna mounted her horse and made her way home.

Elsa ran through alleyways, pushing people out of the way.

The metal on metal only got louder until she caught sight of who was fighting. There was a large crowd around them.

A hooded figure was slashing at a burly man, they both were armed with swords.

"Stop!" Elsa pushed her hood back.

Unfortunately it distracted the hooded figure, who glanced her way. Sharp, green eyes stared at her.

"Hah!" The burly man took his chance and went to slash the other. But the hooded one turned, avoiding the sword, and slashed back. The sword was pointed at his neck. To Elsa's disgust, people started cheering.

"Those who bet I'd win," the hood was pushed back and blonde hair tumbled in waves. "Thank you." She took a bowl full of coins. There was another bowl of coins, probably those who had bet on the man. "Split that among you." There was a mad dash for the bowl. The swordswoman went to count the coins, when a pale hand snatched it away.

"Hey!"

"What do you think you're doing?" The other, older woman laughed as she counted the coins herself. "You can't make a living from this unless you work for someone, and the only one you're working for is me. Get back to work, or there'll be trouble."

She walked away, leaving the swordswoman simmering angrily.

"Sorry I interfered." Elsa approached the other blonde.

She was facing away from Elsa, leaning on her sword. She turned once Elsa spoke.

"It's okay, I still...won..." She peered at Elsa's face.

Elsa peered at her face.

They both lowered their hoods.

"Woah." The swordswoman said.

"We could be sisters. I mean, I have a sister, but we could _also_ be sisters." Elsa said. The girl had an uncanny resemblance to her. While they didn't look exactly the same, if someone were to quickly glance at them they wouldn't be able to tell who was who.

"What's your name?" They both asked simultaneously.

"You first." Elsa laughed.

"Emma."

"Elsa."

"You have the same name as the princess." Emma noticed. Then saw Elsa's guilty look. "You _are_ the princess, uh...your Highness. Aren't you supposed to be in the castle?"

Elsa started to walk, gesturing for Emma to follow. "Yes, but I'm savouring my first, and last, taste of freedom before getting married next week. To my best friend."

"At least you're not a seamstress. I don't even know how to sew!" said Emma.

"I know how to sew, I could teach you one day."

"Thanks, but no thanks. I want to be a warrior, not a seamstress." She shuddered.

"And I don't want to be someone's fiancé. Guess we're both going to be something we don't want to be."

"I never knew the princess was a girl like me." Emma glanced at Elsa's face. "It's really amazing, we would look almost the same except for a few features. Face shape, eye colour..."

"What about this birthmark?" Elsa slipped the shoulder of her dress down where a birthmark in the shape of a snowflake was.

"No, I don't have any birthmark. I do have this," under her sleeve on her wrist, was ink.

"A flower?"

"I had an hour of freedom last year, my friend lent me some money and I got it. A spur of the moment thing." She pulled her sleeve back down.

"Elsa, I got-" Killian's voice interrupted Emma.

"Bloody hell." He blinked then relaxed. "Thought there were two of you for a second. Who's this lass?" He reached for Emma's wrist, probably to kiss the back of her hand, though Elsa would never know because Emma smacked his hand away.

"Sorry! Reflex!" She recognized the Prince of the Enchanted Forest easily, but she still didn't like to be touched. Even the next in line didn't get to touch her without permission.

"No worries, though that was a hard smack." He ginned good-naturedly, "any harder and I'd have lost my hand."

"Very funny." Elsa rolled her eyes. "Where's my chocolate?"

"I dropped it." He said sheepishly. "Sorry. I think we should be getting back." He nodded at Emma, "Nice to meet you, love."

"Don't call me love." She snapped. Elsa already liked her.

"Sorry... Lass." He winked, causing Emma to roll her eyes. "Elsa, we should get going."

"One day you _must _come to the castle." She and Killian climbed onto the horse.

"Really?"

"I'll send someone for you." Emma couldn't wait to see the look on Regina's face when someone the princess had sent was there for _her._

"I'll be waiting at Madame Mills." She smiled sadly.

"Goodbye Emma, I won't forget you." Elsa waved. As Roger trotted away, Elsa couldn't help but notice Killian looking back at the other girl, who was standing in the middle of the cobblestone alley.

"Bye." Emma waited until they were out of sight, before trudging back to Madame Mills.

* * *

><p><strong>Don't forget to write your opinion in the reviews, it could be a plea for me to update, ( I get those a lot,) or what you likeddidn't like about this chapter. It's my whole incentive to write!**


	4. Chapter 4

IT'S NOT A CHAPTER AGAIN, SORRY!

It's really, really busy for me at the moment, and I'm so sorry it's taken so long for me to update. Hang tight, I'll hopefully be updating all my fics by early January. I know with the hiatus it's kinda worse, but I swear this'll be ready in January!

Don't worry readers, I'll kick these exams so hard they won't be able to bother me until June.

When I have my other set of exams.

~LoveHappyEndings


	5. Gone

**Line breaks don't seem to be consistently showing up, so if you see a big space or you think there should be a line break somewhere there probably was.**

**Disclaimer: OUAT and the Princess and the Pauper don't belong to me. Some lines are from PatP**

* * *

><p>It wasn't long before Elsa grew tired. She hadn't gone back to the castle for another hour, she went with Killian to lie on one of the many hills on the outskirts of town.<p>

"Did you really think she was me?" She had asked.

"Only for a second. She's prettier." At that, she turned her head to glare at him. But then it faded, she saw his look. Not a teasing one, or joking one either.

"Oh god, you like her." Elsa slapped her forehead.

"What? No! I just..." He fiddled with his ring. "I recognized something about her."

"And what's that?"

"Loneliness."

"You barely talked to her. Or looked at her."

"I saw enough." He was talking solemnly, as if someone had died. "You said that she told you she got 'an hour of freedom'?"

"Yes..."

"She's a seamstress and doesn't want to be?"

"Yes..."

"She's working for Madame Mills." He said with finality. "Mills takes the children of people who owed her too much."

"What's that have to do with loneliness?"

"Work it out." Killian said, a little sharply.

"Oh, her parents." Elsa felt more sympathy for the other girl. She didn't have her father anymore, but at least she had her mom.

"I hate people like her parents." He sat up abruptly. "Your father didn't choose to leave you, but hers did. And mine."

"Killian." She leaned forward and placed a hand on his arm. "Her parents didn't mean to, they were in debt as you said."

"That's their fault, not hers."

"You've found wonderful parents in Snow and David. Maybe it's a good thing your real ones left."

"I gotta go." He stood up, well tried to, Elsa tugged on his sleeve.

"I didn't mean it like that, sorry it came out wron-"

"Elsa."

She sighed, she knew when he wanted to be alone. "Tomorrow then?"

"Tomorrow."

Presently, her head was slowly sinking into the pages of her book. It had been a long day for her, all she wanted to do was fall onto her bed and sleep for twenty eight years.

_Meow_

"Uhwha?" Her head snapped up, no one in the castle owned a cat.

_Meow_

She put her robe on and hurried out into the hallways.

_Meow_

"Hello?" She mentally slapped herself. A cat wasn't going to reply with '_Yeah, I'm over here!' "_Kitty?"

_Meow_

"Kitty?" She had reached the bottom of the staircase. Elsa noticed that the closer she got to the cat...

The less it sounded like one.

Too late, she realized it was a trap as a burlap sack went over her head, and she couldn't see anything.

"Hey!" She kicked and punched, she knew she made contact when a loud _ow_ pierced the air.

"Shut up! We don't want anyone seeing this. The guards here aren't very good though, we just walked into the castle." A voice snickered.

"Get me out of here!" Elsa yelled.

"Oh hush." Something hard hit her on the head, she blacked out.

* * *

><p>"Elsa? Elsa, are you ready to hear about my adventure?" Anna knocked on the ajar door. "Elsa?"<p>

Her sister wasn't there, and that worried her.

She ran through the castle yelling Elsa's name, a pair of muddy footprints near the bottom of the stairs caught her eye.

"Anna, why are you calling Elsa's name?" Kristoff, Elsa's tutor and Anna's fiancé rushed out, she had been too preoccupied to notice she was directly in front of his chambers.

"She isn't in her room, I ran through the castle, I'm really tired by the way, and I can't find her but I saw _this_!" She pointed to the footprints.

"That's an odd shade of mud." He frowned. Kristoff pulled a stick from the back of his pocket and scraped some off. "Let me study it, I can see where it's from."

"Thank you." Anna breathed, relieved. "What should I tell Mother?"

"That Elsa's gone. We can check her room for clues."

"Why the heck do you have a stick?" Anna asked once they were on they were on their way to the queen.

"Scientific reasons." He shrugged.

* * *

><p>"I command you to open this door!" Elsa pulled on the door handle. They had taken her to some house, she didn't know where.<p>

"Yes your Highness!" Blue Shirt went to open the door.

"_Yes your Highness..." _Green Shirt mocked. "We're in charge!"

"Right I knew that." He stopped talking. "Do you hear that?"

"Wha-" The distinct sound of horse hooves was heard through the thin walls. Elsa and the two idiots froze.

_Knock knock knock_

_"_She's right in there R-"

The boss cut in. "Does she know I'm behind it all?"

"No..."

"Then shut up!" He snapped. "Keep her here, until the wedding to Prince Killian is cancelled."

Elsa's eyes grew wide, she knew that voice. And while she was happy she wouldn't have to marry Killian, being kidnapped was going a little too far.

* * *

><p>"Elsa? Elsa?!" Gerda's frantic cries bounced off the walls as she paced around her daughter's room.<p>

"Oh, there's something on her desk," Rumplestiltskin grabbed it and passed it solemnly to the queen.

"It's a letter, addressed to me." She scanned it, then her hand flew to her mouth. "She's run away! She says she can't bear to marry her best friend!"

"Mother?" Anna peaked out from her sister's shoe closet, as if maybe Elsa had hidden herself in there. "Did you find something?"

"Your sister! She's run away!" Gerda was still shouting, her eyes wide in panic.

"Wow, I didn't think she was _that_ against marrying Killian." Kristoff appeared. "Shall we send out search parties your Highness?"

"What an absurd question!" Rumplestiltskin snapped. "Of course we will! At once!"

"Someone has to tell Killian." Anna said to Kristoff as the queen and her advisor left the room, her mother's terrified words sounding through the halls.

"I will, don't you have a wedding to plan for?" He picked up the letter the queen had apparently dropped. "Huh."

"What?" Anna craned her neck to read the letter.

"I deliver Elsa's letters, and she always sprays it with-"

"A floral perfume. Yeah...so?"

"This smells like peppermint." He crinkled his nose. "Some kind of scent you'd buy for less than a couple pounds."

"Someone else wrote that." Anna surmised. Her eyes grew wide in panic. "She's been kidnapped! What if Elsa's hurt? Omigosh what if she's _dead_?"

"I'm sure she isn't dead. The kidnappers would have taken her for ransom or something." He didn't say anything about her being harmed.

"We _have_ to find her. She could be hurt." Anna grabbed his arm tightly.

"Well...Rumplestiltskin's sending out search parties," he gently released his arm fro his fiancee's death grip, "they're probably better suited for the job."

"Are you coming or not?" She ignored his entire sentence.

Kristoff sighed. "I can't. I've still got my duties to perform here."

"And you aren't worried about me?" Anna didn't sound annoyed, on the contrary, she sounded delighted.

"You've gone on plenty of adventures."

"I've fought some ogres too."

"Exactly, I know you're perfectly capable of this."

"Good." She kissed his cheek. "I'm leaving right away. I promise to be back in time for the wedding."

"Good."

* * *

><p>Kristoff fidgeted next to Rumplestiltskin. The two of them, plus the queen, Killian, and Smee were all gathered in the throne room.<p>

Smee was pacing and yelling,"this is an_ outrage!_"

"I am sure we'll find her." The queen said weakly.

"I insist we cancel the wedding if the princess doesn't return by the end of the day!" Smee declared.

"So she's just...gone?" Killian asked softly. Kristoff wasn't sure whether he had seen the prince like this before. Usually he was all 'swashbucking-ly suave'.

"Ran into the night," Rumplestiltskin said bluntly. Kristoff shot him a _look_.

"And you're sure she wasn't kidnapped?" The prince looked to each of them.

"Why? Are you just shocked someone doesn't want to marry you?" Rumplestiltskin sneered.

"See for yourself." Kristoff handed Killian the letter written by 'Elsa'.

He scanned it, then frowned. "This isn-"

"I know." Kristoff spoke quietly, only the prince could hear him. The queen was talking to her advisor, and Smee was still pacing and muttering. "Anna is searching for her as we speak."

"So she's been kidnapped." Killian's voice was flat, and the look in his eyes was murderous.

"I think she was taken because someone wanted something. The crown maybe." Kristoff shared his theory. "And now that she's gone..."

"Her kidnapper can do what he wanted to do. Or she." Then his face lit up, Kristoff could practically see a lightbulb go off in his head. "Wait, so you think that it's because she's _gone_?"

"Yes..."

"And what if she wasn't?"

"Then the kidnapper's plan wouldn't work. But we don't know how long it'll take to find Elsa."

"That's no problem. The kidnapper only has to _think_ Elsa is here."

* * *

><p><strong>I am so sorry for the long wait, hopefully I'll be posting more frequently. Exams are almost over, and now I'm studying for my L. Wish me luck!<strong>

**Reviews are loved**


End file.
